Tour operator Thomas Cook is close to clinching a multimillion-pound deal in Russia to set up a joint venture with Intourist, the Russian travel agency established in 1929 by Stalin.

The deal would be Thomas Cook's first major initiative in Russia and is designed to tap into growing demand from the Russian middle classes for holidays in the sun to escape the long winters. Sources say Thomas Cook is "weeks away" from signing an agreement with Intourist's parent company, Sistema.

Egypt and Turkey – countries where Thomas Cook has contracts with hotel chains for the UK market – are among favourite Russian destinations.

Although both sides declined to comment on negotiations, the Russian company's president, Alexander Arutyunov, said recently his firm's strategy involved the possibility of forging strategic partnerships with European global players.

Before privatisation in 1992, Intourist was the official state travel agency of the Soviet Union; its remit was to manage the travel arrangements of foreigners visiting the Soviet Union and to maintain surveillance. In 2009, it generated revenue of around £250m, but made a small operating loss.

The chief executive of Thomas Cook, Manny Fontenla-Novoa, is understood to have been in Moscow recently to hammer out a deal that could see his company make a small upfront payment.

Thomas Cook, which merged with MyTravel in 2007, is Europe's second biggest tour operator after Tui, which took over First Choice. It was founded by Thomas Cook, a cabinet maker, in 1841 to carry temperance supporters by railway between UK cities in the north and Midlands.